Before I start gushing about this incredible brittle, I need to tell you how much your support of our ebooks, Edible Gifts and Tiny Treats, means to me. For the first time ever, Lisa and I offered a special 2-for-1 deal on our two books in hopes that we could not only help you with gift ideas for the holidays but also get in a few more sales before making our annual donation to Elephant Nature Park and the Toronto Vegetarian Association—both of which are given one-third of our ebook proceeds. We’re thrilled that your additional purchases have culminated in a pretty decent donation to these charities. It wouldn’t happen without your support. So, thank you!

Okay, now on to this brittle, which I think I titled appropriately as the ultimate vegan brittle. Because it is. Hello, sweet, crunchy, gingerbread-spiced goodness.

I think it’s so amazing because instead of using traditional ingredients like white sugar, corn syrup and butter, this recipe makes use of organic coconut sugar and a little brown rice syrup to create the sweet, crunchy candy, and then it’s topped with a spiced gingerbread granola. If you’ve never made brittle before, there’s no need to fear as it is actually quite simple to make! The first time I tried my hand at it, I was surprised by how nicely it came out, and it took less than 30 minutes from start to finish.

Despite its simplicity, I’ve got to share a couple of tips to ensure your success in brittle-making:

• Make sure you have an accurate candy or cooking thermometer. If you don’t own one, they should be easy to find at most grocery and bulk food stores (I got mine at a bulk store for less than $10).
• This is an instance where mise en place is important—measure out all of your ingredients beforehand, as you have to work quickly once the sugar reaches temperature.
• And once last thing: don’t fret about ruining your candy-coated saucepan. Once you’ve poured the mixture onto the cookie sheet, immediately soak the used saucepan in hot water. If the candy has already hardened in the saucepan, simply fill it with water and bring it to a boil. The caramel should melt away.

I fell in love with Nature’s Path Love Crunch gingerbread granola when I first tried it last year, and it made the perfect topping for this recipe. If you prefer to make your own granola, try Dreena’s gingerbread granola (it’s amazing) or try other flavours like pumpkin spice or maple pecan.

This would make a fantastic holiday gift if layered in mason jars or wrapped in little cellophane bags tied with ribbon. That is, if you can stop yourself from eating it all first.

Gingerbread granola brittle

Yield: Makes 24 servings

Ingredients:

• 2 cups coconut sugar
• 1/3 cup brown rice syrup
• 1/3 cup water
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1.5 cups Nature's Path  Love Crunch Gingerbread granola (or homemade granola)

Directions:

1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
2. In a large saucepan (preferably a heavy-bottomed pan) set over medium-low heat, stir together the coconut sugar, brown rice syrup and water. Cook, stirring occasionally, until sugar is melted.
3. Increase heat to medium and bring to a boil.
4. Continue boiling, without stirring, until a candy thermometer reaches about 300°F (hard crack stage), occasionally brushing the side of the pan with a silicone pastry brush dipped in cold water. It should take about 10 minutes to reach a deep amber colour but keep an eye on it as it cooks. If you do not cook it long enough, it will not reach the brittle stage; if you cook it for too long, it may burn. If you’re uncertain, do a quick test: use a small spoon to scoop out some of the mixture from the pan and drop the mixture into a cup of ice water. It should form hard brittle threads that break when bent. If they are still soft and bendable, continue cooking.
5. Once it reaches temperature, remove pan from heat and immediately stir in baking soda and salt. Stir until foamy.
6. Immediately pour the mixture into a thin layer on the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle evenly with the granola. Allow to cool completely before breaking into pieces.

Adapted from Nature's Path.

Product giveaway:

Just so you can try it out yourself, my wonderful friends at Nature’s Path have offered to send an awesome assortment of their vegan products (including the Love Crunch gingerbread granola) to one ADC reader! You can find other vegan-friendly recipes using these products on the Nature’s Path website.

The giveaway is open to residents of US and Canada. To enter, simply use the Rafflecopter widget below and I’ll announce a random winner on Monday, December 22, 2014. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

And, just in case you’re not in the candy-making mood, here are some more of my favourite holiday recipes that might pique your interest:

• Maca mint chocolate truffles
• Hazelnut brownies with maple chocolate ganache
• Best-ever butter tarts
• Cinnamon pecan truffles
• Gingerbread people
• Walnut shortbread
• Raw mint Nanaimo bars
• Flourless almond ginger cookies
• Nanaimo bars
• Persimmon jam dots

Not long ago, I fell in love with vegan baking and would spend countless hours hopelessly experimenting with new flours and flavours in my tiny condo kitchen. After much persuasion from my husband, I finally put myself out there and started sharing my baking results with others—and amazing things happened. Not only did I start to realize my potential, but I made an impact on others. Colleagues became curious about using healthy substitutions in their own kitchens, family members embarked on new ways to improve their diets, and friends sought out advice on cutting meat from their daily meals.

There is nothing more rewarding than sharing your passion with the world and realizing your skills have the potential to change lives, change habits, and even change the world, just by encouraging others to celebrate the deliciousness of a plant-based diet.

In other words, today is about baketivism. This means using vegan baking as a form of activism.

The beauty of Vegan Baking Day is that you can make up your own rules. The concept is simple: bake up your favourite vegan goodies and take them with you to work, school, band practice, jury duty, shopping…wherever you find yourself on the last Friday of September. The official website lists some tips on how to plan ahead, choose your desserts and have fun, too.

Since I’ve had one heck of a busy week, I wasn’t able to create my own treats (maybe next year). While perusing options on a few of my favourite recipe blogs, Angela‘s easy chocolate chunk toffee bars stuck out as something easy and recognizable. Needless to say, my colleagues loved them.

Chocolate chip toffee bars

Yield: 12 bars

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
• 1/4 cup 12-grain flour (or spelt)
• 2 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
• 1/2 cup brown rice syrup
• 2 tbsp Earth Balance (or other nondairy spread)
• 1/4 cup Sucanat
• 2 tbsp natural almond butter
• 2 tbsp natural peanut butter
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup vegan chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350F and line an 8-inch baking pan with parchment paper (long enough to it draps over the sides).
2. In a large bowl, combine the rolled oats, flour, chia seeds, cinnamon, salt, sliced almonds and walnuts. Set aside.
3. In a small saucepan, stir together the brown rice syrup, Earth Balance, Sucanat, almond butter, peanut butter and vanilla on medium-low heat until the Earth Balance is melted and the mixture is smooth.
4. Pour the liquid mixture into the bowl with the oat mixture and stir well. The mixture will be very thick. Fold in the chocolate chips.
5. Scoop the mixture into the pan and smooth out with the back of a wet spoon or offset spatula. Bake at 350F for 25 minutes. Allow the bars to cool in the pan for 20 minutes and then place the pan in the freezer to set (I left it for an hour). Cut into bars and serve, or store in an air-tight containter for future snacking.

Recipe adapted from Oh She Glows.

Now, on to dessert.

I don’t remember the last time I bit into a Snickers bar, but I’d imagine it tastes something like this sinfully delicious tart, which was the perfect ending to a meal with my brother- and sister-in-law last Saturday. They came to the city for the day and I suggested they stop by for dinner and drinks before heading home that evening. With little time to prepare, I whipped up Angela’s creamy 15-minute avocado pasta, a salad and bruschetta for our meal, and, lucky for us, I just happen to have this new recipe creation in my freezer for dessert.

It’s a little nerve-racking when I share my dessert experiments with others, not knowing if it should have been tweaked just a little more. Thankfully, this peanut caramel and chocolate tart came out just as I had intended. The combination of a light peanut crust (adapted from my pistachio-poppyseed crust), toasted peanuts and caramel (made from a base of brown rice syrup and peanut butter), and a smooth dark chocolate ganache turned out to be a sophisticated, vegan version of the popular candy bar I grew to love as a child. The best part? No sugar or butter or other non-vegan ingredients are required. Enjoy!

Peanut caramel and chocolate tart

Yield: one 8-inch tart

Ingredients:

For the crust:

• 3/4 cup unbleached AP flour
• 1/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 cup ground peanuts (or other nuts)
• 1/8 tsp baking soda
• 1/8 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 cup sunflower or canola oil
• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup peanuts, toasted

For the filling:

• 1/2 cup brown rice syrup
• 1/4 cup smooth, natural peanut butter
• 1 tbsp agave nectar
• 2 tbsp flax meal
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 tsp arrowroot
• 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk

For the chocolate topping:

• 4 oz. dark chocolate
• 2 tbsp almond milk

Directions:

For the crust:

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the unbleached flour, whole wheat flour, ground peanuts, baking soda and salt.
2. In small bowl, whisk together the oil, maple syrup and vanilla. Add the liquid mixture to the dry mixture and mix until a dough forms.
3. Press the dough into a flat disk shape and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes. While the dough is chilling, proceed with the filling (recipe below).
4. Remove the dough from the fridge and roll it out between 2 pieces of parchment paper, working from the middle out, until it is large enough to fit into a 7- or 8-inch tart pan with a removable bottom.
5. Carefully transfer the dough to the tart pan and gently press it down to fit, filling cracks where needed. Be sure the dough is not thicker where the sides and bottom meet. Trim any excess dough on the rim. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
6. Evenly spread the toasted peanuts over the bottom of the tart and spoon the filling over top, making sure all the peanuts are covered in the filling.
7. Bake the tart at 300 degrees on the bottom rack of the oven for about 25 minutes, or until the filling starts to bubble and the crust is light golden. Remove the tart from the oven and allow it to cool completely. Return the tart to the fridge for 2 to 3 hours to firm up before topping with chocolate ganache (recipe below). Place the tart back in the fridge to allow the chocolate to firm up before serving. Store leftovers in the fridge or freezer, covered with plastic wrap.

For the filling:

1. In a medium bowl, stir together the brown rice syrup, peanut butter, agave nectar, flax meal and vanilla until smooth.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the arrowroot and almond milk until the arrowroot is dissolved. Add the mixture to the brown rice syrup mixture and stir until well combined and smooth.

For the chocolate topping:

1. Melt the chocolate using a double boiler and whisk in the almond milk until smooth.

Because I also adore banana bread, I recently came up with these wholesome banana bread cookies. Combining ripe bananas, rolled oats, cinnamon and nuts, I consider them a hybrid between a crunchy oatmeal cookie and moist banana bread. These little guys are proof that cookies can taste incredible and still be good for you—they’re an excellent way to get fibre, potassium and protein into your diet. As far as I’m concerned, cookies don’t need to be loaded with fat and sugar to taste good, and certainly not the unhealthy fats and refined sugars that are used in most cookie recipes.

I made a few versions of this recipe before I was completely happy with it, and I found the addition of brown rice syrup made a noticeable difference in the texture of these cookies (it helps make baked goods crisp), so please don’t leave it out. They could easily be made gluten-free by substituting the spelt flour for a GF option and making sure your oats are GF-certified. These cookies are best eaten straight out of the oven, so feel free to test a few before sharing them with everyone else. Enjoy!

Banana bread cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup rolled oats (use certified gluten-free, if necessary)
• 2 tbsp spelt flour (or gluten-free flour)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp sea salt
• 1 very ripe banana, mashed
• 2 tbsp brown rice syrup
• 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
• 1 tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

1. Using a food processor or spice grinder, process 1/2 cup of oats into flour.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the oats, ground oat flour, spelt flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
3. In a food processor or blender, blend the banana, brown rice syrup, maple syrup, coconut oil and vanilla until smooth.
4. Add the banana mixture to the oat mixture and stir just to combine. Fold in the chopped nuts.
5. Scoop cookies (about 1 large tbsp each) on a cookie pan lined with parchment paper. Use the bottom of a glass to flatten the cookies. Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes, or until the edges start turning golden brown. Allow to cool completely before removing them from the pan.

But alas, that is what I did after reading the magazine article about sushi and remembering that I still had a package of nori in my cupboard that really needed to be used up. But, unfortunately, I’m not a fan of sushi-making. So what to do?

I’ve had healthy snack ideas on the brain since increasing my cardio routine a few weeks ago so, after collecting some simple ingredients in bulk, I came up with these no-bake brown rice cereal bars that are made up of all the delicious flavour components of sushi, minus the rolling and vegetable slicing. They include hints of nori, peanuts, sesame and wasabi combined with crunchy brown rice cereal and the subtle addition of brown rice syrup and coconut oil. Super yum.

When creating these treats, I experimented with different liquid sweeteners and I found that the thick brown rice syrup combined with enough agar flakes worked out best as a binding agent, so you won’t see these babies falling apart as soon as they hit room temperature. This recipe also requires sheets of nori that are crisp enough to crumble into tiny pieces. The easiest way to do that is to place the sheets directly on your oven rack and toast them at 350 degrees for a few minutes until slightly crisp. You can lightly toast your peanuts and seeds at the same time. Enjoy!

Sweet nori bars

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup brown rice syrup
• 6 tbsp coconut oil
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp wasabi paste
• 3 1/2 tbsp agar flakes
• 2 cups crispy brown rice cereal (like Erewhon brand)
• 1/2 cup toasted peanuts
• 1/3 cup toasted sunflower seeds
• 1/3 cup toasted, hulled sesame seeds
• 2 sheets toasted nori, crumbled

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the brown rice syrup, coconut oil, salt and wasabi. Sprinkle the agar flakes on top and gently stir. Heat over medium-low until the coconut oil melts and the mixture comes to a light boil. Simmer for about 30 seconds until the mixture begins to thicken slightly. Remove from heat.
2. Add the brown rice cereal, peanuts, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds and nori. Stir until well combined, making sure the dry ingredients are well coated with the syrup mixture.
3. Spoon the mixture into a 8 x 8-inch square pan, pressing down gently and spreading it out evenly using the back of a spoon. Place the pan in the freezer for about one hour to firm up. Cut into bars using a sharp knife. Store in an air-tight container in the fridge or freezer.

And then I discovered a new love: sunbutter. Made of roasted sunflower seeds, it resembles the appearance and texture of PB, but with a milder, toasty flavour. With less saturated fat and a higher protein, iron and fiber content, it is the perfect base for my new health snack. You can buy sunbutter in most grocery stores these days, but making your own is cheap and easy, so why not? I add flax to my version for an extra punch of minerals and omega-3.

Aren’t my new sunbutter bites cute? Eating one of these is like taking a bite of sunshine. Although there are similar vegan brown rice treats floating around the web, I found that most of them don’t hold together very well at room temperature, which means packing them to go is not an option. The use of agar flakes in this recipe solves that problem!

Sunbutter bites

Ingredients:

Homemade sunbutter:

• 2 cups hulled sunflower seeds
• 1 tbsp ground flax seeds
• 3 tbsp sunflower or canola oil
• pinch of sea salt
• 1 tbsp maple syrup (optional)

Sunbutter bites:

• 1/2 cup sunbutter
• 1/4 cup maple syrup or agave nectar
• 1/4 cup brown rice syrup
• 2 tbsp agar flakes (see notes below)
• 1 1/2 cups crispy brown rice cereal
• 1/2 cup kamut flakes
• 1 cup granola (preferably homemade)
• Optional additions: handful of hemp hearts, dried fruit, poppy seeds, pumpkin seeds, ancient grain cereal flakes,etc.

Directions:

For the sunbutter:

1. Toast sunflower seeds until slightly golden.
2. Once cooled, put sunflower seeds in a food processor and grind until they become a coarse meal.
3. Add the oil, salt and optional maple syrup. Process for about 10 minutes, occasionally stopping the processor to scrap down the sides of the bowl. If it looks too thick, add a tbsp more oil and continue to process. It will eventually become smooth, I promise! Store sunbutter in the refrigerator.

For the sunbutter bites:

1. In a medium saucepan, mix together the sunbutter, maple syrup and agar flakes and heat on low, stirring occasionally, until the mixture comes to a light boil. Remove from heat.
2. Stir in the crispy brown rice cereal, kamut flakes and granola. The mixture should stick together well.
3. Spoon the mixture into an 9 x 5-inch loaf pan and refrigerate until firm (about an hour). Cut into bars or squares and enjoy!

 

Please note that the amount of agar depends on how much oil you used in your homemade sunbutter. If you used little to no oil or if you are using store-bought sunbutter, reduce the agar amount to 1 tbsp.